Page 177 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Sweden

SWEDEN AREA B Y AREA  175

SOUTHERN GÖTALAND

Sweden’s two southernmost provinces, Skåne and Blekinge,
together form Southern Götaland, with the country’s third largest
city, Malmö, as the region’s main town and gateway to Europe. The
gentle, undulating landscape retains its Danish atmosphere from
times past. Castles and medieval and Viking sites abound, and the
historic naval port of Karlskrona is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The province of Skåne has an undeserved farmhouse with a thatched roof, built
reputation for being completely flat, around a cobbled courtyard. Castles and
but apart from the plain of Söderslätt manor houses, in many cases built by
the countryside is surprisingly hilly the Danish nobility, are a feature of the
with the rocky ridges of Söderåsen, countryside. In the coastal communities,
Linderödsåsen and Romeleåsen former fishing huts are today cherished
dividing the region. To the northwest, by their summer residents.
the area is bounded by the imposing Southern Götaland differs from the
Hallandsåsen ridge. rest of Sweden in atmosphere, too. The
The province of Blekinge, criss-crossed people of Skåne are known for being
by rivers and lakes, is known as the relaxed and for loving good food – and
Garden of Sweden. It has its own island in large quantities – something which
archipelago with sheltered harbours has lent this part of the country its tavern
beloved by sailors. North, towards the culture, which has its equivalent in the
border with Småland, the slightly wild Danish kroen just across Öresund.
forest landscape predominates. Having been sparring partners in the
Throughout Southern Götaland the long-distant past, Sweden and Denmark
Danish influence prior to 1645 (see p41) are now linked by the Öresund Bridge
is still evident, not least in the architecture, from Malmö to Copenhagen. Both sides
which differs greatly from elsewhere in of the sound are now collaborating over
Sweden. A common sight in rural Skåne the creation of a visionary new Swedish-
is the traditional, often half-timbered Danish region, Öresund.

Ales Stenar, a stone ship on Skåne’s south coast, thought to be a late Viking grave or cult site
Malmö’s West Harbour at dusk, with the spectacular Turning Torso skyscraper in the background

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